MUSC Catalyst

MEDICAL UNIVERSITY of SOUTH CAROLINA

January 25, 2013

Vol. 31, No. 22

Inside DeDicateD Service

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The VP for clinical operations and executive director of the medical center retires.

Striking

8 gOlD

The American Heart Association, along with the American Stroke Association, recognized MUSC for its exceptional patient care.

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Excellence

5

Meet Debbie

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Earl B. Higgins

t h e c ata ly S t Online

http://www. musc.edu/ catalyst

A group of cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, scrub nurses and perfusionists went to Lima, Peru, to help save children with congenital heart defects through surgery and to train local medical professionals.

A mission to save Peruvian children

By Ashley BArker Public Relations

T

he first of 15 pediatric patients in Peru gave Margaret Relle, a second-year MUSC perfusion student, and Alicia Sievert, an MUSC pediatric perfusionist, the biggest smile of their nearly week-long medical mission trip to Lima, Peru, last October.

The patient came in to the minimalist, Spanish-speaking hospital with her hair in pig tails. She was bright-eyed, with no worry that she needed to have heart surgery in order to survive and live a normal life.

The anesthesiologists, cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, echo cardiologists, scrub nurses and perfusionists who had traveled to the Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño from around the

world through Heart Care International Inc. (HCI) were anxious to meet her. She would be the first patient that the group would face without the use of their traditional kinds of monitors and safety devices.

Her surgery was a success. By the end of the day, she was sitting up with a lollipop in her mouth. The next morning the little girl was out of bed – still wearing her soft pajamas – and walking down a bright pink hallway with her parents.

“She was just holding her mom’s hand and smiling,” Relle said. “That was the moment where everyone thought, ‘This is exactly why we’re here.’”

A Heart Care International Inc. pillow Relle and Sievert’s 20-person HCI group included medical professionals from Oregon, was placed in the bed with each See Mission on page 10 recovering heart-surgery patient.

2 The CATAlysT, January 25, 2013

Members of the MUSC Community It is my pleasure to share with you the outcome of the search for the vice president for clinical operations and executive director of the Medical University Hospital Authority. About six months ago, we began the process of selecting a successor for Stuart Smith. A search committee was appointed and Dean Etta Pisano served as its chair. Working with search consultants, a very strong field of candidates was identified from across the country. Three rounds of interviews were conducted, ultimately leading to a unanimous selection by our board of trustees. The board felt that the most outstanding candidate was right here at MUSC and Dr. Pat Cawley, our current executive medical director and chief medical officer, was offered the position.

A native of Pennsylvania, Dr. Cawley received his medical degree from Georgetown University and his master’s degree in business administration from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. He trained in internal medicine at Duke University and was named a master in hospital medicine by the Society of Hospital Medicine. He also is certified by the American College of Physician Executives and is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. He is a past president of the Society of Hospital Medicine.

Dr. Cawley brings to his new position a deep understanding and appreciation for the medical university. He has been a champion for MUSC Excellence, and under his guidance, we have made tremendous progress in measures of quality and patient safety. The University Healthsystem Consortium recently recognized these efforts by awarding the coveted Rising Star honor to the medical university.

We fully expect that Dr. Cawley will bring this same dedicated pursuit of excellence to his new responsibilities.

In order to allow the smoothest possible transition in leadership, Dr. Cawley will serve as executive director designate, working closely with interim executive director Kester Freeman through the end of March. At the beginning of April, Dr. Cawley will assume the executive director position. In the interim, he and Mr. Freeman will focus on working with our senior leadership team and Huron Healthcare to implement a number of initiatives to improve our performance and increase our efficiency. Dr. Cawley also will work in the next few months to develop longer-term plans and appoint his successor as executve medical director and chief medical officer.

I trust you will join me in welcoming Dr. Cawley to his new role. Thank you for all you do to advance the mission of the medical univeristy and to help us serve the citizens of South Carolina.

Promoting total health more important than weight loss F

or the past 10 weeks, I have been disease associated with obesity or involved with the Healthy Charleston poor dietary choices. After getting the Challenge, a weight loss competition patient perspective from my challenge at MUSC’s Wellness Center. While participants on how much courage it attending the MUSC dietetic internship takes to actually change one’s lifestyle, I open house last December, became a better professional. this program caught my While most entry-level attention as it was a unique registered dietetian positions experience that is not offered are acute-care based, I worry by any other internship. that I will be unable to During the challenge, foster behavior change and participants were divided prevention with my future into teams and paired with patients. Many people think a personal trainer and nutrition only involves dietetic intern. My job as formula calculations, weight the dietetic intern was to loss advice or general healthy Angela Fish review the participants’ food eating tips. In reality, it Dietetic Intern logs, making comments and involves getting to know the suggestions for improvement patient and their struggles, as needed. I also spent time with the and tailoring our approach to their participants at their weekly meetings individual needs and life challenges. discussing recipes and menus.

During the finale of the program, I was It wasn’t until a few weeks into the able to see how far both the participants program that I realized we were not and the staff had come. Although involved in the program just to review not all participants looked noticeably food logs or to teach the participants slimmer, they were certainly all healthier about a healthy diet. We were there to and happy to have completed such a build relationships with the participants challenging task. and learn just how difficult making The final message of the program healthy lifestyle changes can be. was that weight loss is not about image Before I became involved, I would or finding an easy way to drop a few become frustrated while spending pounds, but about small changes in hours attempting to educate patients becoming healthier and creating a better on the complications of chronic quality of life.

Nutrition matters

With best wishes,

Nominations being accepted for teaching awards

Raymond S. Greemberg, M.D., Ph.D. MUSC President

A call for nominations is under way to all MUSC faculty and students. The purpose of these awards is to recognize members of the MUSC faculty who have made outstanding contributions to the university through teaching.

Awards may be given from the following categories: q Clinical/Professional (EducatorMentor): For teaching excellence in non-traditional roles with individuals or small groups, specifically those who teach, mentor, or serve as role models in their clinical and professional development. q Scholarship/Academic (EducatorMentor): For teaching excellence in non-traditional roles with individuals

Editorial of fice MUSC Office of Public Relations 135 Cannon Street, Suite 403C, Charleston, SC 29425.

843-792-4107 Fax: 843-792-6723 Editor: Kim Draughn catalyst@musc.edu Catalyst staff: Cindy Abole, aboleca@musc.edu Ashley Barker, barkera@musc.edu

The Catalyst is published once a week.

Paid adver tisements, which do not represent an endorsement by MUSC or the State of South Carolina, are handled by Island Publications Inc., Moultrie News, 134 Columbus St., Charleston, S.C., 843-849-1778 or 843-958-7490. E-mail: sales@moultrienews.com.

or small groups, specifically those who teach, mentor, or serve as role models in their scholarly or academic development. q Educator-Lecturer: For teaching excellence in traditional, didactic or classroom teaching. q Developing Teacher: For teaching excellence demonstrated by a junior faculty member in either of the above categories.

In addition to a commemorative medallion, each recipient will receive a cash award from the MUSC Foundation. The deadline for nominations is Jan. 28. Forms may be obtained and submitted at http:// www.carc.musc.edu/nomination/.

The CATAlysT, January 25, 2013 3

4 The CATAlysT, January 25, 2013

Medical Center

‘Making a difference every day’ Employees of the Month Willette Smith, Business Development & Marketing Services “Willette Smith truly went above and beyond to help me in the marketing department. As an intern, I was completing two major direct mail projects.

Deadlines were quickly approaching, and I was overwhelmed as it was the first time I had completed projects of this kind. I asked Willette to help me understand the next steps in the project and to ask for any advice she had for me in order to keep the project moving along. In addition, Willette took it upon herself to connect me with the contact at the print shop by explaining the project to him. Because of Willette, the project kept moving along smoothly, and she helped me to understand the process and complete the project efficiently.”

Nominated by Janna Cone Jocelynn Reese, Hollings Cancer Center Jocelynn works in the infusion suite at Hollings Cancer Center. Tina Graves, a nurse in the area, wrote: “I had a patient who became increasingly confused. She was manipulating her IV line and kept getting up out of her chair.

She did seem to calm down when I was in the chair beside her but I couldn’t stay there as I had other patients. I was getting a little overwhelmed because I felt this lady’s safety was at risk. Jocelynn saw that I was having trouble and all the patient needed

PhlebOtOmy team winS high Patient markS

was someone to talk to and distract her from her IV lines. She hopped right up and said, ‘I’ll sit with her, the desk is covered.’ She was calm and made a big difference to my patient and to me.”

Nominated by Carrie Weston Aaron Huber, 9E Neuroscience Unit “Aaron stepped in to help when a patient became combative and began throwing things.

Even after being punched in the stomach by the patient, he remained calm and professional.

When the patient ran off the unit he followed her, running down stairs and outside to ensure her safety. After the excitement of the chase, Aaron returned to the unit only to find that the incision on his patient’s neck began oozing. The patient’s blood pressure became high, and her heart rate dropped. Unshaken, he assisted the doctors while they intubated and didn’t skip a beat.”

Nominated by Stacy Harris Randy Pilch, 9E Neuroscience Unit “Randy went the extra mile to ensure the safety of his peers and patients on the floor when one of his patients became combative with staff and began throwing furniture.

He went into protector mode and shut all of the open patient room doors near his patient that was on a destructive rampage. He put himself in harm’s way to prevent other patients, their families, and staff from getting hurt.”

Nominated by Stacy Harris

The phlebotomy team in the Hollings Cancer Center laboratory is awarded the patient satisfaction banner for the first quarter of fiscal year 2013 by MUSC Excellence. This same team won the hand hygiene award in 2012. From left: Melanie Warren, phlebotomy manager; Mark Lawless, phlebotomist team leader; Beth Williams, phlebotomist; Joann Thomason, inpatient coordinator; Rhonda Fleischman, phlebotomist; Nancy Reilly-Dixon, director of laboratory services; Angel Orechovesky, operations coordinator; and Patti Warnack, phlebotomist. Not pictured is Samantha Hurn.

Physician of the Month

Jerry Squires, M.D., transfusion medicine director, Pathology & Lab Medicine “Dr. Squires always demonstrates enthusiasm for his work and goes above and beyond to identify areas of improvement — working collaboratively to improve the care of patients in a costeffective manner. MUSC is blessed to have someone with his talent, drive and determination to ensure our patients, systems and processes meet the highest of standards.

Dr. Squires emulates the MUSC standards of behavior every day. He is a delight to work with and also is a really good educator. He is always concerned about the technologists that work in the transfusion medicine department and always willing to share interesting case studies with the team. He supports the goals of the organization through his active participation in the Blood Utilization 5/5 plans by providing consultative services and education for patient care providers. Dr. Squires regularly comes in at night to discuss case studies with the third shift staff members.

Patient care is top priority, and Dr. Squires is always ready to assist the pathology residents and blood bank staff with education and support. He holds the upmost kindness and respect while maintaining a certain diligence and attitude to make sure testing is performed correctly.”

Nominated by Joyce Foster, Daniel Pach, Karen Garner and Gloria Prosser

The CATAlysT, January 25, 2013 5

Meet Debbie

Debbie Cannon Department University Purchasing How long at MUSC 9 months How are you changing what’s possible at MUSC By providing the best possible customer service that I can Children Katie, 15, and Phillip, 24 Dream job Telecommuting (just about any position) from Tortula or St. John Meal you love to cook Grilled tuna, asparagus and baked sweet potato A must-have in your fridge Hummus Favorite radio station 95SX Dream vacation Anywhere a cruise ship is headed Favorite place in the world Tortula, British Virgin Islands Favorite quote “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”— Hippocrates

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Clinical operations VP, executive director retires after 40 years

O

n Dec. 31, 2012, W. Stuart Smith, vice president for clinical operations and executive director of the medical center, retired after 40 years of dedicated service.

Smith, who joined MUSC as a hospital administrative resident in 1973, has been instrumental in numerous activities from establishing the medical center’s first comprehensive strategic plan to the opening of Ashley River Tower, phase one in the Medical University Hospital Authority’s (MUHA) hospital replacement project.

In the past four decades and since leading the medical center enterprise, Smith has witnessed and contributed to many of the medical center’s milestones and accomplishments: q Helping the hospital’s number of inpatient days through facilities and services grow from 155,669 (1994) to 216,590 (2012) q Helping the hospital grow net revenue by 895 percent in the past 25 years (1987 to 2012) q Working with state legislators to approve the I have great respect for Stuart. He embodies integrity and values. Last fall, I presented Stuart with a commemorative baseball bat and items welcoming him to The Studer Group’s “Healthcare Hall of Fame.” Stuart’s heart and values lay there as well as with MUSC. Every day he went to bat to make MUSC a better Smith receives a place for employees, commemorative bat. volunteers, physicians, patients and families.

—Quint Studer, President and CEO, The Studer Group Much of S.C. Hospital Association’s (SCHA) success in improving quality and patient safety can be attributed to the strong foundation laid down by board members like Stuart Smith. From improving the patient experience to progressing critical quality initiatives, Stuart has dedicated his life to making South Carolina’s health systems more efficient and effective.

—Thornton Kirby, President and CEO, SCHA Stuart has been intimately involved in the extensive expansion and renovation of the medical center’s

formation of the MUHA (2000), which allowed the medical center to enhance its revenues, reduce expenditures and use efficiencies q Establishing MUSC Excellence (2006) q Reorganizing clinical services to 11 service lines (2008) q Opening of Ashley River Tower (2008) q Providing capital improvements in the renovation of 21 operating rooms and two emergency rooms q Leading the medical center in receiving awards including: University Healthsystem Consortium Rising Star Award, National Research Corporation’s Hospital of Choice Award, U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals Ranked in Specialties (cardiology & heart surgery, ENT, gastroenterology and nephrology), U.S. News & World Report Best Hospital in S.C. & Top 25 percent (13 clinical areas), U.S. News & World Report’s Best Doctors, National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center, Leapfrog Group’s Hospital Safety Score “A” rating for patients, and HealthCare’s Most Wired Hospitals by Hospitals & Health Networks magazine

Stuart Smith receives South Carolina’s Order of the Palmetto award at a board of trustees dinner.

Joining him is his wife, Barbara.

facilities. He spearheaded the first comprehensive long-term clinical enterprise strategic plan in the early 1990s, and this plan was recently updated to take MUSC into the future. Stuart has led by his behaviors, not his words. He has taken care of people who take care of people. He implemented a cultural transformation through MUSC Excellence. Stuart has fulfilled his mission in an exemplary fashion.

—James B. Edwards, DMD, President Emeritus, MUSC Stuart Smith accomplished a great deal during his 40 years at MUSC. Under his leadership, the hospital authority was established, MUSC Excellence transformed our patient satisfaction and quality measures, and the Ashley River Tower was designed, financed, constructed and occupied. Stuart’s greatest legacy, however, is who he is as a person – caring, honest, sincere, patient and loyal. We are all grateful for the opportunity to have worked with him.

—Ray Greenberg, M.D., Ph.D., MUSC President Stuart’s greatest accomplishment during his tenure is the construction of Ashley River Tower. It took a lot of guts to do that at a time when the institution struggled financially, but he had the foresight and vision to know that was the right thing to do. He pushed forward in spite of many of us trying to convince him otherwise.

—Lisa P. Montgomery, VP for Finance and Administration I’d like to thank Stuart for his many years of excellent

Stuart Smith, left, joins Hal Curry and Dr. Howard Evert during the opening of Ashley River Tower in 2008. service to MUSC. He has been a committed leader for this institution for many years, and we owe him a huge debt of gratitude for his tireless service. On a personal note, I have greatly enjoyed working with Stuart and will miss having him as a colleague.

—Etta D. Pisano, M.D., VP for Medical Affairs and Dean of the College of Medicine When I look around and see the many employees Stuart’s mentored and guided through the years, one can see how he’s impacted how health care is delivered throughout South Carolina. Many of our former employees who have gone on to work in health care in other states and institutions have utilized the leadership skills that he’s taught. He really has

See sMiTh on page 7

The CATAlysT, January 25, 2013 7

sMiTh Continued from Page Six impacted health care throughout the state.

—Annette Drachman, J.D., Legal Affairs I’ve worked with Stuart for 22 years. In the 1990s, when I arrived to become the College of Medicine dean, then— hospital director, Charlene Stuart, Stuart Smith and I got together to create a hospital strategic plan. We accomplished that, and it is one of the monumental things that has happened to this institution. It’s been an honor to work with Stuart throughout these many years.

—Layton McCurdy, M.D., Dean Emeritus, College of Medicine I've admired Stuart for more than 20 years. As a former health care “marketer,” Stuart was not the norm.

He was (and continues to be) a “quiet doer.” His humility and respectful nature meant that he didn't sound his own gong, but rather deflected praise and recognition to others. Bright, accomplished, and very thoughtful, he's left a huge legacy at MUSC. —David McNair, Excellence One of Stuart’s greatest accomplishments is bringing aboard MUSC Excellence, which, to me, really transformed the culture here. He’s leaving that legacy for us at MUSC. —Marilyn Schaffner, Ph.D., R.N., Clinical Services Administrator and Chief Nursing Officer I think the MUSC Excellence Program

has done wonders for our academic medical center, our patients, faculty and employees. I want to thank Stuart for adopting MUSC Excellence.

—Dave Neff, Ambulatory Care Services Stuart gave me my first opportunity as a resident more than 30 years ago and, before that, as a Citadel undergraduate student exploring the field of hospital administration. Stuart has been an outstanding mentor and great friend.

—Al Nesmith, Safety, Security, Volunteer & Guest Services Stuart has had to juggle the demands that come with having to work with our complicated health care system.

Balancing all of this is a significant, praise-worthy accomplishment.

—Steve Hargett, Chief Financial Officer Stuart has always focused on patient care and what’s best for the patient. If you look around at the organization over the last 30 years and compare it to where we are now, it’s an incredible change. The way we serve our community is so much different than what it used to be.

—John Sanders, Children’s Hospital Stuart’s been an extraordinary and skillful guide through many transformations in health care including our journey with the electronic health record. Thank you for your vision, wisdom and leadership.

—Bob Warren, M.D., Chief Medical Information Officer and Professor of Pediatrics

Stuart Smith, center, hosted a number of hospital administrative residents during his tenure.

Nominations for diversity awards being accepted MUSC’s Office of Student Diversity is accepting nominations for the Earl B. Higgins Award 2013.

Nominations are being accepted for the Earl B. Higgins Achievement in Diversity Award and the Student Leadership in Diversity Award.

Nominees should be individuals who have contributed significantly to diversity. Nominations must include the nomination form and two letters of endorsement for each nomination. All submissions should be received by Feb. 1 to burnham@musc.edu. For information, visit http://academicdepartments.musc. edu/diversity/higgins.html.

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MUSC wins gold with stroke awards

By Cindy ABole Public Relations The MUSC medical center received the American Heart Association/American Stoke Association’s Get with the Guidelines Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. This achievement recognizes MUSC’s commitment in providing exceptional care for stroke patients based on evidence-based strategies and guidelines MUSC is among several dozen hospitals to achieve an 85 percent or higher adherence to Get with the Guidelines stroke quality achievement indicators for two or more 12-month intervals and to achieve 75 percent or higher compliance with six of 10 stroke quality measures.

The award reflects the collaborative work of MUSC’s Comprehensive Stroke & Cerebrovascular Center and multidisciplinary teams of physicians, nurses and technologists. This effort was led by Christine Holmstedt, D.O., medical director of the clinical stroke services, and Shelly Ozark, M.D., stroke neurologist, as well as a team of neuroradiology, neurosurgery, neurology and emergency medicine physicians who specialize in stroke care and related disorders.

Ozark worked with staff to reduce the door-to-needle time from the nationally recommended 60 minutes or less to receive thrombolytic therapy to improve

Dr. Shelly Ozark, right, awards CT technicians Lori Myers, left, and Corrine Doherty, with their lapel achievement pins. outcomes for stoke patients. In spring 2012, MUSC teams averaged 78 minutes. Now, stroke team members are successfully treating patients at an average of 33 minutes. To celebrate this, Ozark distributed brain lapel pins to emergency department and CT technicians for their hard work and helping to “save a brain.”

“Time lost is brain lost with stroke. The sooner we can treat a patient, the better they are likely to have good outcomes. During a stroke, brain cells die at a rate of 2 million cells per minute. Every minute wasted is a minute too long,” Ozark said.

In addition to the national award, MUSC was a recipient of the Target: Stroke Honor Roll, for improving stroke care. For information, visit http:// www.muschealth.com/stroke/.

The CATAlysT, January 25, 2013 9

Employee Wellness

K

icking the cigarette smoking habit is the single biggest improvement to health a smoker can make.

In addition to the long list of health risks associated with smoking, MUSC employees covered by a state health plan feel an additional financial burden beyond the high cost of cigarettes.

A tobacco-user surcharge adds an Susan Johnson additional $40 to $60 per month to health insurance premiums, depending on coverage.

There are resources available to employees who are ready to make the decision to quit and are looking for help.

Beginning Jan. 25 and running through Aug. 1, MUSC employees and students may take advantage of a free tobacco-cessation program. Participants will receive a voucher for a free onemonth supply of nicotine-replacement therapy or a one-month starter supply of prescription medication used for smoking cessation as recommended by a physician.

Vouchers for medications must be redeemed at MUSC pharmacies or the MUSC Department of Family Medicine.

Pharmacists will discuss health history and medications to screen for potential interactions before selecting a product that is right for you.

To register, visit http://www.musc. edu/employee wellness.

Here are some additional resources: q Quit for Life – A professionally

Health at work

trained quit coach works with the individual to create a personalized quit plan. The participant may call the Quit for Life toll-free support line as often as needed. Participants receive a quit guide and five telephone calls from a coach.

For more information, visit https:// www.quitnow.net/scstatehealthplan/ ProgramLookup/EnrollNow. q Pharmacy counseling is available at http://www.muschealth.com/ prescriptionrefill/. q MUSC tobacco-free campus information can be found at www.musc. edu/tobaccofree.

Employee Wellness events

q Chair massages: Free massages are offered to employees on Tuesday nights and midday Wednesdays. Look for broadcast messages for locations and times. q Zumba at Harborview Office Tower: Join licensed Zumba instructor Felecia Curry for a weekly Wednesday night Zumba class held in Room 302, HOT. Email curryf@musc.edu for information or to register. q Charlestowne Landing: On Feb. 2 and 3, Tri-county residents will receive half-price admission to Charlestowne Landing.

MUSC Urban Farm

q Families are encouraged to participate in a Work & Learn session from 9 to 11 a.m., Feb. 2. q Early bird maintenance: Maintenance won the farm will be held from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m., Jan. 30.

Email johnsusa@musc.edu for information about the Office of Health Promotions at MUSC.

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Mission Continued from Page One Georgia, Arizona, Texas and Ohio. Two medical school students joined Relle from New York. They all had the same mission: to help save children with congenital heart defects through surgery and to train local nurses, physicians and perfusionists to take care of patients from start to finish.

“In addition to saving children’s lives, the Peruvian medical team was taught how to diagnose the problem, perform the surgery and provide follow-up care with patients,” Sievert said. “It’s a two-fold goal.”

The patients are selected by HCI officials based on the difficulty of their required surgery and the ability to teach a technique that the Peruvian surgeons had never seen before. But the trip wasn’t just about making the Peruvians more proficient.

“Here, in the U.S., we rely a lot on technology for things I would take for granted — we have level detectors and bubble alarms, those are things that affect patient care. Over there we didn’t have those things,” Relle said. “Over there you have to think ‘what am I going to do, how am I going to build it and where am I going to put things?’ If something went wrong in the states, I could now adjust it with a more ready and creative mind.”

That kind of hands-on experience and interaction with poverty-stricken patients is why Sievert, who has now been on five HCI mission trips, requested to bring a perfusion student along.

“It was both humbling and moving that we were able to help all of these children so freely,” Sievert said.

“Helping one child is helping a family and all their friends who care for this sick child. To be able to share that with a student was the best part for me.”

Second-year MUSC perfusion student Margaret Relle uses medical tape to maintain parts of the heart-lung bypass machine.

Alicia Sievert, an MUSC pediatric perfusionist and a former assistant professor in the College of Health Professions, said the best part of the trip was being able to share the experience with a student.

Perfusionists — medical professionals that run the heart-lung bypass machine during heart surgeries — are rare in Third World countries. There are only 12 perfusionists in Peru, while there are roughly 3,500 in the United States, according to Relle.

“Sometimes we’d find ourselves using medical tape to put things together,” Relle said. “Going away to another country answers the question, ‘What could I do if something stopped working?’”

Other parts of the trip were also unconventional for the pair.

After eating breakfast at the hotel each morning, the HCI group piled onto a bus and rode to the hospital.

How they got there and back was a secret that only the driver knew.

“It’s a bunch of wealthy Americans wearing white coats on a bus,” Sievert said. “So, they never take the same route to the hospital because they’re afraid that someone is going to hijack the bus.”

Armed guards were stationed at the front of the hospital and certain places were surrounded by cinderblock walls with broken glass on top to keep out trespassers. But overall, Sievert and Relle said they felt safe.

“Peru was a very clean country and everyone had a lot of Peruvian pride,” Sievert said. In addition to taking care of patients, the group visited several cathedrals and catacombs. Sievert also went to Machu Picchu before leaving on Oct. 30, 2012.

“I’ll go back to Peru in a heartbeat. It was a humbling experience. The Peruvians come from a lot less,” Relle said. “I was amazed at what they can do there with what they have. If they can perform cardiac surgery with next to nothing than they’re pretty amazing people.”

18, 2013 11 The CATAlysT, January 25,

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12 The CATAlysT, January 25, 2013